1. Field of the Invention
Our invention relates generally to oil and gas field safety equipment, and particularly to a portable supply of breathing gas which can be hooked up to user access means situated at various locations on a drilling rig to provide emergency breathing air to workmen in an atmosphere of noxious or poisonous gas.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Exploration, drilling, completion and working of oil and gas wells involve numerous dangers to the health and safety of the workmen, and one serious problem arises from the possibility of emission of toxic gases and especially hydrogen sulphide (H.sub.2 S) during these operations. Numerous deaths in the oil fields in recent years have caused investigations at both the state and federal levels and as a result thereof both OSHA and the Texas Railroad Commission have enacted legislation requiring gas monitoring during the drilling and working of such wells. A system for sampling gases from wells to meet this requirement is disclosed in our copending application, Ser. No. 588,900 filed Apr. 19, 1977 now abandoned.
More recent requirements make it mandatory to provide breathing gas such as compressed cleaned air, accessible to all personnel at the well site. To date, no readily accessible and satisfactory system for providing the breathing gas has been found, and on many rigs gas bottles are scattered about the platform, which is already cluttered with tools and equipment and presents yet a new safety hazzard. Attempts have been made to provide each worker with a belt-attached portable air bottle and mask, however, in order to carry a reasonable quantity of air, the bottle would be too cumbersome and heavy and would be uncomfortable for the worker to carry, especially for those who must climb the derrick to the monkey board or walkaround.